I have lived in Nevada County since 1979 when I was only 10 years old. Coming from the city where we had newer theatres I had no idea that theatres like this one existed. Sure, the theatres in the city might have been more technologically advanced, but as a young boy walking for the first time into the Del Oro I knew there was something special about it. The ambiance is a unique a experience all it’s own. Even now as an adult while I sit in the main auditorium waiting for the picture to start I can’t help but look up and admire the unusually high ceilings, adorned beautifully with 40’s era imagery and art deco lighting as the smell of old timbers, plaster and freshly popped popcorn all simultaneously play on the senses. The experience brings to mind a simpler time of which I have heard my grandparents speak…a time when they could enjoy a movie for a quarter and watch such great silver screen icons and Clark Gable, Greta Garbo and the Marx Brothers.
The Del Oro to me is not only a huge part of both Nevada County and California history, but is also a part of my personal history. As a child growing up, going the Del Oro was always an exciting and captivating experience. In an odd way, I miss the old seats, the old drapes and the cracked and faded murals, but I also appreciate the care and effort that is obviously going into it’s restoration, preservation and modernization. It has obviously been a Godsend for the old theatre that it is now under new ownership, but you know what, in a way I personally feel a sense of ownership and pride in it is well. I spent many key childhood moments in that theatre, with old friends and family, some still close, some moved far away and some sadly no longer with us. Just last week my 11 year old daughter and I watched “Sky Captain” together in that grand old theatre and had a great time together. Over the years I’ve also enjoyed taking out-of-town friends and family to the Del Oro and watching them experience the same emotion and excitement as they marvel at this cinematic landmark like I once did many years ago, and still do even to this day.
Thank you Mike and Barbara Getz for preserving a irreplaceable piece of history in lovingly restoring our Del Oro Theatre. Movie going has once again reminded me of my cherished childhood experiences…when I would sit with friends and excitedly await that exact moment that the lights would go down, I could hear the reel make it’s first “click” and the screen would magically come alive.
I have lived in Nevada County since 1979 when I was only 10 years old. Coming from the city where we had newer theatres I had no idea that theatres like this one existed. Sure, the theatres in the city might have been more technologically advanced, but as a young boy walking for the first time into the Del Oro I knew there was something special about it. The ambiance is a unique a experience all it’s own. Even now as an adult while I sit in the main auditorium waiting for the picture to start I can’t help but look up and admire the unusually high ceilings, adorned beautifully with 40’s era imagery and art deco lighting as the smell of old timbers, plaster and freshly popped popcorn all simultaneously play on the senses. The experience brings to mind a simpler time of which I have heard my grandparents speak…a time when they could enjoy a movie for a quarter and watch such great silver screen icons and Clark Gable, Greta Garbo and the Marx Brothers.
The Del Oro to me is not only a huge part of both Nevada County and California history, but is also a part of my personal history. As a child growing up, going the Del Oro was always an exciting and captivating experience. In an odd way, I miss the old seats, the old drapes and the cracked and faded murals, but I also appreciate the care and effort that is obviously going into it’s restoration, preservation and modernization. It has obviously been a Godsend for the old theatre that it is now under new ownership, but you know what, in a way I personally feel a sense of ownership and pride in it is well. I spent many key childhood moments in that theatre, with old friends and family, some still close, some moved far away and some sadly no longer with us. Just last week my 11 year old daughter and I watched “Sky Captain” together in that grand old theatre and had a great time together. Over the years I’ve also enjoyed taking out-of-town friends and family to the Del Oro and watching them experience the same emotion and excitement as they marvel at this cinematic landmark like I once did many years ago, and still do even to this day.
Thank you Mike and Barbara Getz for preserving a irreplaceable piece of history in lovingly restoring our Del Oro Theatre. Movie going has once again reminded me of my cherished childhood experiences…when I would sit with friends and excitedly await that exact moment that the lights would go down, I could hear the reel make it’s first “click” and the screen would magically come alive.
Bill Zankich